Using Mechanics of a Double Pendulum to Maximize Sport Performance

Sports have developed over time into an entire industry from the children who grow up playing sports to the professional players that fans love to watch. Because all sports involve movements of the human body, a bio-mechanical system, these movements may be modeled with mathematics and physics. Specifically, the sports of golf, tennis, and baseball can use the concepts of a double pendulum to maximize sport performance. The double pendulum model is applied to these sports by making the arm one pendulum and the club, racquet, or bat the second pendulum. A good understanding of the mechanics of a double pendulum and its connection to these sports can enhance the efforts of players and aid them in their performance

Diversification Benefits of iShares and Closed-End Country Funds

We study the performance and diversification of iShares and their rival closed-end country funds from April 1996 to December 1999. International iShares are country-specific series of securities that track the price and yield of a specific Morgan Stanley Capital Internation (MSCI) country index and, presumably, should provide diversification benefits. Our single-index model demonstrates that iShares replicate the home index, showing some potential for diversification. However, our two-factor model, which isolates the "true" diversification virtues, documents that both iShares and closed-end country fund market prices maintain considerable exposure to the U.S. market. Furthermore, the net asset value returns of the closed-end funds demonstrate a strong home country exposure, suggesting there is no substitute for direct foreign investment. 2002 The Southern Finance Association and the Southwestern Finance Association.